The secret database of construction workers, maintained illegally but used by some big name companies, hit the headlines last week. Ian Kerr illegally maintained a database of some 3,000 workers alongside descriptions of their lazy attitudes, poor timekeeping, and so on. The company has been shut down.
Everyone seems to have overlooked that a register somewhat like this exists anyway, in the form of the National Staff Dismissal Register. I blogged about this back in May and the register would seem to still be in hand, although it has managed to keep out of the headlines. The NSRD was sanctioned by the Information Commissioner after certain safeguards were agreed – and in fairness the scope of behaviour covered is much smaller. Visit its website here.
Yes, I was a bit puzzled that most of the news reports failed to mention the NSDR. I’d feel happier if its use was forced to be open. I’m aware that CV checking companies usually contact the applicant/employee with any inconsistencies to give them a right to reply. I am not sure that an employee who faces refusal of a post because of the NSDR would know why.
Do you have any practical experience of its being used or is it still only in planning?
I haven’t encountered it at all in practice, nor have colleagues to my knowledge, so I’m not sure what stage it’s at. I guess the issues that might arise in proceedings are:
– discrimination, if inclusion on the register constituted victimisation or something similar;
– Schedules of Loss – if inclusion on the register has restricted a Claimant’s ability to find work.
The NSDR site is quite unclear what the consequence of a successful tribunal claim would be on a register entry.
I have had some things to say about this in my latest entry on my new blog for Employment Law Advocates. http://www.employmentlawadvocates.com/blog/
You’ve been a good commenter here in the past James, so you can keep the plug!